GROUP BREW: Strawberry Mead

[newbee17]

Yeh sounds good I was too late to start last 1 but if I can find strawberrys at good price I'm in this time

 

[sfyeti]

I just racked mine after 8 months of bulk aging- it came out at .998. I decided to put it on five more pounds of strawberries to give it an extra boost of that flavor.
I stole a little bit for tasting and I'm amazed. It still has quite a bit of alcohol burn but the strawberry shines through nicely. I can't wait until after it sits on the fruit for a while.

 

[SpanishCastleAle]

I plan to make this as my second mead. But I have a question regarding the OG/FG. Per the OP, this is supposed to start out at 1.14-1.15 before fruit and then 1.125-1.130 after fruit. It is supposed to finish at 1.015-1.020.

Since we are using an 18% ABV tolerant yeast shouldn't the yeast just keep going until they either run out of sugar or hit 18% ABV, whichever comes first? Starting at 1.130 and finishing all the way down to 1.000 doesn't hit 18% so why does the yeast stop at 1.015-1.020?

Finally got around to making this about 3 weeks ago, racked it over the weekend. As expected, FG was 0.996. I still don't get how this is supposed to finish so much higher using 18% tolerant yeast.

 

[flyweed]

it's suppose to finish at about 1.020 or 1.015 because you are SUPPOSE to stop it...this bit of info was left out, because this recipe isn't intended to be a step by step guide for new mazers....but rather people who have brewed many meads, and understand that this particular yeast will take it to dryness, but if the directions say take it down to 1.015...you will need to cold crash at that S.G.

SFYeti - Yep...even down around 1.000 it'll still taste Great...but this stuff is unbeatable at about 1.015..it is just SOOOOO GOOD. You should also try the same recipe with fresh raspberries. YUM YUM

Dan

 

[daugenet]

it's suppose to finish at about 1.020 or 1.015 because you are SUPPOSE to stop it...this bit of info was left out, because this recipe isn't intended to be a step by step guide for new mazers....but rather people who have brewed many meads, and understand that this particular yeast will take it to dryness, but if the directions say take it down to 1.015...you will need to cold crash at that S.G.

SFYeti - Yep...even down around 1.000 it'll still taste Great...but this stuff is unbeatable at about 1.015..it is just SOOOOO GOOD. You should also try the same recipe with fresh raspberries. YUM YUM

Dan

I believe some different verbage would help clear things up

Fements down to about 1.015 - 1.020...then you can rack into secondary and bulk age for at least 6 months.

Maybe put to "ferment it down to 1.015 and cold crash/stabilize blah blah" ?

I made it dry and am happy with the results so far. It is still rather young but drinkable to me. I filled about 12 beer bottles with it so that I wouldnt feel too bad about sampling over time. (1 for each month till i reached a year)

 

[bob1852]

Mine fermented so fast I didn't even catch it before it got down to 1.005!

I have it kegged right now and it's good stuff with a little fizz to it.

 

[flyweed]

Daugenet...you are right..I should have corrected that....I wish the EDIT function would work...but it only lets you edit for so long..then the edit option is gone..so I couldn't go back and add that into my first post.

But you are correct..this stuff is very drinkable young..but a bit hot...it improves every week with age..trust me.

AZ - yeah..she goes quickly..I took gravity readings twice a day after I pitched the yeast...each time I punched the cap, I'd pull a thief full and test SG.....I took her down to 1.020...racked into secondary...then let that sit for I can't remember how long..until it hit about 1.012...and then into a tertiary and into the fridge to cold crash and bulk age......after it cleared I siphoned into a 5 gallon corny...put the co2 on and carbed it up..and served it....GOOOOOOODDD STUFF!!!!

I have now tried this one with fresh Raspberries too...give it a try..it's also GOOOOOD

Dan

 

[louie0202]

So I could actually for a third, place in a corny in my fridge and just cold crash it until I was ready to throw it in the kegerator I take it. Would I need to worry about releasing the pressure etc while its in the fridge?

 

[SpanishCastleAle]

I plan to make this as my second mead. But I have a question regarding the OG/FG. Per the OP, this is supposed to start out at 1.14-1.15 before fruit and then 1.125-1.130 after fruit. It is supposed to finish at 1.015-1.020.

Since we are using an 18% ABV tolerant yeast shouldn't the yeast just keep going until they either run out of sugar or hit 18% ABV, whichever comes first? Starting at 1.130 and finishing all the way down to 1.000 doesn't hit 18% so why does the yeast stop at 1.015-1.020?

I just wish that, in the three months between making the post above and actually making my Strawberry mead, someone could have posted what you did below flyweed.

it's suppose to finish at about 1.020 or 1.015 because you are SUPPOSE to stop it...this bit of info was left out, because this recipe isn't intended to be a step by step guide for new mazers....but rather people who have brewed many meads, and understand that this particular yeast will take it to dryness, but if the directions say take it down to 1.015...you will need to cold crash at that S.G.

I understood that it should take it to dryness but the conspicuous lack of any mention of stopping it, combined with no answer for my question above made me think it was somehow magically supposed to stop or something. I could have easily done this but until you posted the above there was zero mention of it in this thread (unless I missed it, very possible). Also, many of the experienced mazers that post here say they much prefer to NOT try to stop fermentations but to just back-sweeten. So the combination of all the above made it seem obvious to just let it go. I can easily back-sweeten though, it's not like it's a huge deal.

I'm surprised how clear mine is already after only ~1 month. My first mead, a Traditional brewed early March, isn't much clearer. Both taste good already but I have so much beer to drink plus some extra mead leftover from a competition I can wait.

 

[SpanishCastleAle]

I have now tried this one with fresh Raspberries too...give it a try..it's also GOOOOOD

Dan

I was considering doing another soon with peaches. I'm trying to use fruits that are somewhat local. I got about 18# of raw OB honey that I need to use up and my Trad Mead should be ready to come out of that carboy (I only have two 3 gal carboys).

 

[sfbayarea]

Plan to do this mead upcoming weekend.
Two things I want from this mead -want it to be sweet and alcohol potent hence, however, I am new to mead and think that these two requirements contradict each other.

So I have few questions:

1. Once you finish fermenting and cold crush it at 1.015 how sweet this mead is? I am striking for the sweet mead, slightly less sweet than desert wine. If I am trying to reach that sweetness should I use more honey or back sweeten it?

2. To make it more alcohol potent, lets say 14% should I cold crush it at a 1.0? If so wouldn't this make mead more dry and and such controversy my first requirement?

 

[NiteBeest]

Good to see a fellow brewer so close to where I am! If you're super new JAOM and MAOM are both good recipes to start on. My first batch was a 1 gal of JAOM. I have 3 gal of MAOM going right now that I need to rack and let age as soon as my new 3 gal carboy gets here tomorrow.

In response to your quesitons:
1) If you let it go, it will finish fermenting closer to 1.000 (if not a little lower). If you cold crash it between 1.015-1.020 it will be on the sweet side. I think 1.015 is a hair above "sweet" and a little under "dessert" when it comes to FG.
2) If you use the 1116 as recommended and let it ferment to dryness it will take you to about 18%. Yes it will definately make your mead more dry on the dry side.
In response to the overall question... What I've found a lot of people will do (with meads, wines, and ciders) is to let it ferment to dryness and then backsweeten with whatever will go best with the product. In this case it would be easiest to backsweeten with more honey/water blended together or just straight honey. Make sure ferment doesn't restart and you should be good to go.

I think for what you want it would be best to let it ferment all the way to 18% with the 1116 and then backsweeten with honey to the level of sweetness you want. Also D47 finishes around 14% if I remember correctly, so you could always use that to take it to 14% and it'll finish up there while still leaving some sweetness behind (especially with the OG of 1.130ish).

 

[sfbayarea]

Good to see a fellow brewer so close to where I am! If you're super new JAOM and MAOM are both good recipes to start on. My first batch was a 1 gal of JAOM. I have 3 gal of MAOM going right now that I need to rack and let age as soon as my new 3 gal carboy gets here tomorrow.

In response to your quesitons:
1) If you let it go, it will finish fermenting closer to 1.000 (if not a little lower). If you cold crash it between 1.015-1.020 it will be on the sweet side. I think 1.015 is a hair above "sweet" and a little under "dessert" when it comes to FG.
2) If you use the 1116 as recommended and let it ferment to dryness it will take you to about 18%. Yes it will definately make your mead more dry on the dry side.
In response to the overall question... What I've found a lot of people will do (with meads, wines, and ciders) is to let it ferment to dryness and then backsweeten with whatever will go best with the product. In this case it would be easiest to backsweeten with more honey/water blended together or just straight honey. Make sure ferment doesn't restart and you should be good to go.

I think for what you want it would be best to let it ferment all the way to 18% with the 1116 and then backsweeten with honey to the level of sweetness you want. Also D47 finishes around 14% if I remember correctly, so you could always use that to take it to 14% and it'll finish up there while still leaving some sweetness behind (especially with the OG of 1.130ish).

Thank you Nite.

Where do you get your honey in Bay Area? I spotted few posts on the craigslist, but don't know how legit those guys are.

 

[NiteBeest]

For the JAOM I did last year I just bought the giant yellow tin from Safeway. With the MAOM I picked up 10 lb of local Livermore honey at an art & wine festival there last year. Just moved out to Antioch so I'm trying to find an apiary out here. Antioch and Brentwood both have farmers markets on the weekend so I'm thinking I'll check them out. With any luck there will be someone selling honey and I can see if I can work something out with them. Other than that I haven't really found anything good on Craigslist. If I find someone out this way I'll let you know. Granted an hour is a little bit of a drive, but for good honey at hopefully a good price it could be worth it.

 

[Jones]

Started another 6 gallons for this year.

This stuff goes fast!

Also trying prickly pear.

 

[sfbayarea]

Ok, guys, took me a while to gather all of the ingredients, including big bucket for the initial fermentation, but finally everything aligned.
Yesterday, I used 19lb of various organic no preservatives honey, mixed it in a slightly worm water, than added 17lb of strawberries and added water to what I think approximately 6.5g. After that I added 3 campden tabs and 4 tea spoons of nutrients.
Two questions:
1. I have one pack of 5g KV-1116 yeast, which I ordered earlier and it was sitting in my refrigerator for probably month and a half. Is it still ok to add it to the must? To get a better fermentation can I add more yeas of different type? I have one of those liquid yeasts for sweet honey.

2. The nutrients can reads to add 1tsp for each gallon, since I have total of 6.5 gallons, isn't 4 tsp is not enough? Should I add another two tsp tonight before I pitch in yeast?

 

[flyweed]

WOW...I am so glad this thread is still going! I love this mead, and plan on brewing up another batch this winter at some point. It's SOOOO good!! Glad you guys like it

Dan

 

[daugenet]

I plan to make this again but not make it dry this time. Still tasty though.

 

[flyweed]

daugenet -- you aren't suppose to let it go until dry....crash it at about 1.012-1.015 and It'll be perfect!! I hate dry wines as well.

 

[flyweed]

gonna be starting up another 5 gallon batch of this next week..Anyone else gonna join in??

 

[daugenet]

I could be in, in a couple weeks. Won't be off of work until the last week of the year. I hate it when we get put on mandatory overtime....we will be cranking up after the new year too.

 

[good11s]

Question...
What is the opinion of adding Potassium Sorbate and Campden when you rack into secondary? Wouldn't that prevent a renewal in fermenting and keep it sweeter?

Also, I don't completely understand the need for campden in the initial mixing? Could someone explain that to me?

 

[flyweed]

Campden Tablets release sulfur dioxide when They are added in small doses directly to fresh fruits and juices 24 hours or so before adding yeast. ... This is to destroy any wild molds and bacteria that may have been on the fruit

I use to use Campden and potassium sorbate to stop my fermentations early when I was fairly new at brewing...but you can taste those items when used too much. I have since gone to cold crashing, and/or taking my brews to dryness, and then backsweetening and keeping cold in kegs (under 40F)

 

[Devo9]

Question...
What is the opinion of adding Potassium Sorbate and Campden when you rack into secondary? Wouldn't that prevent a renewal in fermenting and keep it sweeter?

Also, I don't completely understand the need for campden in the initial mixing? Could someone explain that to me?

Adding campden initially is to kill off any wild yeast, mold spores, and any other undesireable microorganisms. Be sure to wait at least 24 hours before pitching the yeast, or it might not get started.

Adding Potassium Sorbate and Campden together when you rack into secondary will prevent further reproduction of yeast, and I believe it will reduce the numbers of existing yeast. So this would be done to allow you to sweeten the mead after racking to your secondary. You might still get some fermentation, but it shouldn't ferment much.

I hope that helps

Edit: Bahahaha, Flyweed beat me to the punch! Oh well...

 

[robin850]

Ok folks, you convinced me to mix up a batch. The bees were good to me this year and made 165lbs of honey. I guess I can spare some for Strawberry Mead!

regards,

robin850

 

[opus345]

gonna be starting up another 5 gallon batch of this next week..Anyone else gonna join in??

Flyweed,

I already have a Triple Berry in tertiary, and a Strawberry in secondary. I'm getting ready to start the Blueberry again.

BTW, thanks for taking mgayer's blueberry recipe and adding all the process description to it. It turned out ridiculously good.

 

[Poobah58]

I think I still have some of this stuff! Might have to break it out for Saturday's XMAS party!!!

 

[K9Handler]

I have a question about the recipe about the amount of water; is the original recipe for 5 gallons or 6.5 gallons? Are there any updates to the original recipe or has everyone found that it is spot on?

 

[tuner240]

Well reading this thread as convinced me to make this mead, so I'm coming out of lurker status. First off I would like to thank everyone that posted in this thread for the wealth of information it provides. Secondly, this forum is awesome, as it provides even more information.

I've gotten everything together and sitting on campden tablets now, but was only able to get two gallons of water in after the strawberries were added. I saw that Jaxn posted on page 3 that they were only able to get 3.25 gallons in for their 6.5 gallon batch. Oh, and I guess it would help to say I am making a 5 gallon batch, using 14 # of honey and 13 # of strawberries. My SG was 1.160 and my brix was 36. Is this amount of water normal, as well as the readings?

Edit
Well after sitting on the campden for 25 hours, I took another reading before I pitched my yeast. Everything seems to be alright. Following highest nutrient guide. Words cannot describe how good this smells!

13# strawberries
9# of wildflower
5# of orange blossom
3 campden tablets
Water to 5 gallons
(put strawberries in a sterilized paint filter bag)

1/13/2013 10:30 pm (pitched yeast)
SG - 1.130
Brix - 31
Added first nutrients, punched cap/aerated for 2 minutes

1/14/2013 1:30pm
SG - 1.128
Brix - 28
Added second set of nutrients, punched cap/aerated for 2 minutes

1/14/2013 4:45 pm
Punched cap/aerated for 2 minutes

 

[tuner240]

Well this has turned out to be a success for me. I cold crashed at 1.025 for a week, racked off of the yeast/trash. Brought back up to room temp and then used pectic enzyme to clear (forgot to add in primary). I have 3 2/3 gal of finished product. And by math indicates 13.8% abv. Tasty, potent and sweet! Thanks to all here, and especially yomamma!